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World Investment Report 2018

Investment and New Industrial Policies

This report presents international investment trends and prospects at global, regional and national levels, as well as the evolution of international production and global value chains. It analyses the latest developments in new policy measures for investment promotion, facilitation and regulation around the world, as well as updates on investment treaties, their reform and investment dispute settlement cases. It provides an overview of industrial policy models for countries at different development levels and the role of investment policies within each model. It analyses the investment policy implications of the new industrial revolution for high-, middle- and low-income countries and offers a toolkit for investment policymakers on how to use investment policies for new industrial development strategies.

Foreword

We are at the dawn of a fourth industrial revolution, propelled by frontier technologies and robotization advances that make production better, cheaper and faster than ever before. This new industrial revolution offers enormous opportunities for economic growth and sustainable development with potential benefits on a scale that is difficult to imagine. New technologies promise possibilities of industrial upgrading and leapfrogging. Cheaper transportation and communication, coupled with more efficient logistics, can also help developing countries better link to global value chains. Some of the most advanced emerging economies are already on the verge of becoming global technological leaders in a number of industries.